Tetrarch are a band the metal world is keeping a keen eye on. Having formed in 2007, they have spent the last decade plus grafting and building a buzz around themselves. Despite their tenure as a band they are still being touted by many as rising stars and ones to watch, with some publications going as far as to call them the leaders of the Nu-Metal revival. With that said, all of these things are true in theory, because much like a race of shape shifting robots there is more than meets the eye here.
Unstable is the second album from Tetrarch and is the follow up to 2017’s Freak. One thing that becomes immediately clear is this is a more confident and layered album than their debut. From the get go this album feels much bigger. Opening with the gigantic lead single ‘I’m Not Right’ you know what kind of ride you are in for, massive down tuned guitars, skyscraper level choruses and anguished vocals bellowing angst ridden confessional lyrics.
Tetrarch strike a great balance on Unstable between paying homage to their heroes. Negative Noise sounds like an updated version of Slipknot’s The Heretic Anthem, while Stitch Me Up is the best song Korn never wrote. That isn’t to say that they aren’t trying to forge their own identity, as this album is their defining moment thus far, and will surely open many doors going forward.
The album’s title track and You Never Listen are two of the catchiest songs I’ve heard all year. Addicted seems aptly named, as it is one of the tracks I found myself going back to on repeated playthroughs due in large part to it’s unshakeable chorus.
This is an album that I would have been obsessed with in my teens. It is comforting then to hear a band making an album that sounds fresh in 2021, but with a nostalgic quality that reminds me a lot of the bands who got me into the genre in the first place.
There is a sincerity to this album that gives it a feeling of genuine authenticity. Josh Fore’s agonising lyrics are instantly relatable and give the album an emotional resonance. Musically each song packs a huge punch, while treading the fine line between being as heavy as a set of whale testicles one minute and head bobbingly catch the next.
Not everything on Unstable works and the album does drop in quality towards the end,closing on more on a whimper than a bang. With that said, when it hits, which it does more often than not, it absolutely swings for the fences.
This is another huge stepping stone in Tetrarch’s continued development. It perfectly showcases the band they have grown into while also leaving plenty of room for them to grow and expand. Many things in life might be unstable right now, but on this evidence Tetrarch’s future is certainly not one of them.
